Sugar and Spice_ An L.A. Candy Novel - Lauren Conrad [63]
I need a drink, Scarlett thought grimly, downing the glass of champagne and reaching for another, just as an elderly woman with a cane cut a path through the crowd toward her. She looked like . . .
“Grandma Harp?” Scarlett exclaimed. “I can’t believe you’re here!”
“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world, Honey Bunny,” her grandmother said warmly.
“Honey Bunny?” Deb whispered in Scarlett’s ear.
“She’s eighty-five,” Scarlett whispered back.
“No, it’s cute. I’m gonna start calling you that during our workouts.”
Behind Grandma Harp were Scarlett’s parents. “Hello, sweetheart,” her mother said, handing her a perfectly gift-wrapped box. “It’s a sweater from Saks. Tangerine. You really need to start wearing more color.”
“Happy birthday, Princess,” her father added. “So glad we could be here to share your big moment! Oh, and I met your new friend Naveen. We had a very nice talk about plastic surgery!”
Jane’s parents and little sisters were also there. “Can I help you open your presents, Scarlett?” Nora begged.
“Yeah, and if there’s anything you don’t like, can I have it? Puh-lease?” Lacie added.
Jane leaned into Scarlett and whispered, “Don’t worry. Family’s only staying for the first hour. Then we can have a little more fun.”
Gaby—or the girl who used to be Gaby, anyway—walked up to her, dragging some new faux boyfriend behind her. Scarlett had called her yesterday and tried to talk to her about her recent bizarre behavior. Gaby had replied that she had no idea what Scarlett was talking about, then ended the call, saying she was late for an appointment. Lame.
“Happy birthday, Scarlett!” Gaby said, air-kissing. “This is Roberto. He’s a baseball player.”
“Uh, it’s hockey, actually,” Roberto corrected her.
“Does your boyfriend know you’re here with Dr. Hottie?” Gaby asked Scarlett, winking. “Don’t worry, you’re the birthday girl! You’re allowed to hook up with anyone you want tonight!”
Scarlett gulped. Boyfriend? Oh, no!
“Janie!” Scarlett waved her over. “Were you in charge of this party?” she whispered.
“Yeah, Trevor asked me to organize it. I hope you don’t mind!” Jane whispered back.
“It was really sweet of you. Thanks! It’s just that . . . um, well, you invited Liam, right?”
“Of course I invited him! I mean, I didn’t personally invite him—PopTV handled the invites.” Jane looked puzzled. “But you said he was out of town this week, right? I assumed he wasn’t coming.”
“No. He was flying in, like, an hour ago. The thing is . . . well, never mind, I’ll tell you later. I’ve gotta make a call.”
Excusing herself, Scarlett managed to escape through the crowd and find her way to the ladies’ room. It was empty. Good. She reached under her blouse and turned off the microphone (the crew would figure she wanted privacy), then pulled out her phone and dialed Liam’s number. She covered her other ear with her hand, trying to drown out the loud pop music pouring over the speakers.
He answered on the first ring. “Hello?”
“Liam! Where are you?”
“Where am I? My flight was delayed. We just landed, though, so as long as the traffic cooperates, I should be at the club on time.”
“You knew about the party, right?”
“Party? What are you talking about?”
“My surprise birthday party.” But hearing Liam’s confusion made Scarlett realize it was a surprise for him, too.
Silence. “Your . . . surprise birthday party?” Liam said finally.
“You didn’t know about my party, did you?”
“No, Scarlett, I didn’t know about your party.”
“Jane said you were on the guest list.”
“Well, my invitation must have gotten lost in the mail, then.”
“Oh, God! So your birthday plans for me were real? Telling me to pack an overnight bag and stuff? You didn’t just make that up so I wouldn’t suspect about the party?”
“We have a dinner reservation in